Katash reflects on Maccabi Tel Aviv’s chaotic campaign

Maccabi Tel Aviv ended a turbulent season in the best possible way this week as it wrapped up the franchise’s 57th championship after defeating Hapoel Tel Aviv 2-1 in what will go down as back-to-back titles for the yellow-and-blue over its city rival.

In what was a heated series, both on and off the court, that unfortunately saw a tremendous amount of fan violence in the shadow of the war against Hamas, Maccabi’s coach, Oded Katash, was able to steer his ship to the promised land.

As the campaign came to an end and Maccabi hoisted the championship plate in front of its home crowd, Katash spent some time following the game to take a look back at the entire year and the challenges that he will need to deal with in the upcoming days, weeks and months.

The country’s winningest franchise began the 2023/24 campaign way back in August, when the majority of the prior year’s roster of players returned to the country to start training camp with an air of optimism that this would be a historic and unforgettable year.

With a returning core of star veterans, including Wade Baldwin and Lorenzo Brown as well as budding forwards Bonzie Colson and Roman Sorkin, to go along with newcomers Jasiel Rivero and Tamir Blatt, Maccabi was set to be the talk of the town and challenge for the Euroleague crown.

Maccabi looked superb in its opening Euroleague game against Partizan Belgrade at Yad Eliyahu on Thursday, October 5 as hopes were very high that the club would once again reach the top of the continental basketball world.

However, that was before October 7 occurred, and Hamas’s attack on the Jewish State set off a chain of effects that turned the former reality upside down.

The yellow-and-blue had to pivot quickly as the import players and their families were flown out of the country, and after a very short break Belgrade became the club’s new temporary home.

“It was a difficult year, regardless of basketball,” Katash began. “We are citizens of the country and it has been quite an experience that we are going through. This one season felt like three or four years and in addition to what happened with my good friend and coach Lior Lubin who passed away, it was intense and very complex. Every day there was something that happened and perhaps my character is sometimes a disadvantage in these situations, but maybe it was an advantage.”

In addition to his own mental make-up, Katash referenced his players’ strengths.

“If we didn’t have continuity in the roster from last year, we wouldn’t have been able to survive this entire situation. We had a tough schedule but we were able to do it with the character of the players and building upon what we had started last season.”

The prevailing thought was that Maccabi would fall apart without its home crowd to cheer it on and a successful Euroleague campaign was at that point too lofty an expectation. But that was not the case as the players and staff pulled it together and ended up in seventh place with an impressive 20-14 record, earning it a place in the Play-In. After easily disposing of Baskonia, Panathinaikos was up next for Maccabi as it took the eventual Euroleague champs to five games before falling in Athens.

Local victory

Locally, the yellow-and-blue won game after game in the domestic league throughout the winter months but ended up falling in the State Cup final to Hapoel Jerusalem in a game that took place just days after the club’s continental campaign came to an end.

“When you win a title it’s always great, but this season was extra special after everything we had experienced. After we ended Europe we were really done and we had so many injuries and situations that we paid a price for, whether it was the war or personal issues of the players as well. After we lost the cup, the players really didn’t want to finish this season that way. In some ways, everything went against us but we also have to look at things in proportion as there are still hostages in Gaza.”

Katash’s charges pulled it all together in their league quarterfinal series against Ness Ziona, which resulted in a sweep that was followed up by another walkover versus Jerusalem, which was without injured star Levi Randolph (now rumored to be coming to Maccabi).

Hapoel Tel Aviv looked to avenge last year’s final series loss, but once again the Reds came up short and Maccabi captured yet another title.

While the yellow-and-blue can bask in championship glory, the celebrations will be short lived as it will need to start rebuilding the roster for the 24/25 season that is right around the corner and there will be plenty of changes coming, from both imports to Israelis.

Baldwin and Brown swiftly declared that they will be leaving the team due to the war, with their announcements coming as they were still on the floor celebrating.

Josh Nebo’s contract is up and he will be departing while Bonzie Colson is still undecided as to where he will suit up next season. Baldwin, Brown and Colson all have contracts for the 24/25 campaign with Maccabi, but the club will not stand in their way should they want to leave.

Katash of course would love for them to all stay but the reality is that they will be heading to other teams.

“It’s sad to lose them and break up the team and it’s really sad actually. But what has occurred here this season in the country, it’s part of the price that we have to pay. What happened on October 7 is the biggest incident that I’ve witnessed in my lifetime and we have to take things into proportion.”

Rivero should be back, and the same may be true of Antonius Cleveland, howevervJames Webb will likely be looking for a new home next season.

As for the Israeli contingent, Rafi Menco is a free agent but should return, Josh DiBartoloemo and Jake Cohen are under contract and should be back playing at Yad Eliyahu next season, while Tamir Blatt is opting out of his current contract but will most likely re-sign with the team at a higher rate.

The one big question is the league and finals MVP, Sorkin. The big man is rumored to be heading to North America to try out for NBA teams after a stellar season, but there is also talk that Maccabi will make him an offer that he can’t refuse and he will stay yellow-and-blue for the foreseeable future.

“Roman won every award this season,” Katash said. “I have the privilege of coaching him. He can really do it all and has a huge upside and is one of the most talented players. He’s a great person as well and I’m very proud as to how he came into the playoffs. He was playing well in the Euroleague, but then got hurt and it just took time to get him back up to speed. He needs to be a Maccabi Tel Aviv player for the rest of his career.”

There are plenty of names that have been linked to Maccabi and while the Euroleague home games will most probably be played once again in Belgrade, the club still remains a very attractive option for some players, explained the bench boss.

“Next season won’t be easy and it was a challenge this year just in terms of scheduling. But Maccabi is a big club and has a system in place and while it won’t be easy to keep players and sign players, we are there.

“We know we will lose some players but there are plenty of players who see Maccabi as an opportunity. Maccabi is a good place to play and a place where players can advance their careers.”

It seems that the yellow-and-blue is doing exactly that, finding players who want to come play for Maccabi that have experienced Israel. Those may include Hapoel Jerusalem’s Randolph, Hapoel Holon big man Justin Smith along with Hapoel Tel Aviv’s center Jaylen Hoard, to name a few.

The upcoming campaign will be complex and challenging without a doubt, but the most important thing for Maccabi will be to be able to adapt on the fly and adjust as it did this season.

“There are a lot of question marks. In this chaotic reality, it is impossible to know what the day will bring. Things change all the time, we have to adjust ourselves – because we are heading into a difficult year.”